Stem Cell Therapy for Blood Diseases

A study has demonstrated that cell-signaling regulation technology can activate genetically modified bone marrow cells to grow in vivo into a large population of therapeutic cells to treat blood diseases. The study was published in the September 16, 2002, issue of Blood.

Researchers engineered canine bone marrow cells with a cell-growth switch called Argent and then infused the cells into dogs. An activating small-molecule drug induced robust production of genetically modified blood cells derived from the precursor cells. Production ceased when the activating drug was withheld. The study was conducted by researchers from the University of Washington (Seattle, USA) in collaboration with scientists from Ariad Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Cambridge, MA, USA). Ariad says studies of cellular therapy in dogs are considered highly predictive of findings in humans. The company foresees the use of stem cell therapy to treat genetic blood diseases such as thalassemia and sickle cell disease as well as chronic diseases such as congestive heart failure.

"Providing genetically corrected cell populations with a survival advantage has broad clinical implications and may create new opportunities to treat incurable blood diseases as well as other life-threatening conditions,” says Harvey J. Berger, M.D., chairman and CEO of Ariad.




Related Links:
Univ. of Washington
Ariad